Our quickie trip to Prado (I think it’s in the northern part of Montevideo) last Sunday was partly artsy and partly rough. Initial plan was just to visit the gauchos (cowboys) doing their “acrobats” but we ended up slipping in a trip to the museum that houses the works of Juan Manuel Blanes. Talking about hitting two birds in one shot. Bus 582 brought us to the Parque Prado entrance but after asking a lady officer for directions, we realized that the arts museum requires at least half an hour of walking. Not doable for a summery autumn day. We just took a cab.
First things first. There’s no admission fee to the Museo (Municipal de Bellas Artes) Juan Manuel Blanes , a 19th century mansion turned into a venue for visual arts located at Avenida Millan. Not really an overwhelming collection but it boasts of the important ones as per Uruguayan pride is concerned. Some works are easily noticeable at first glance but there are some that would require patience to fully appreciate. Too bad, the descriptions are in Spanish.
Below is a mix of snapshots taken (without flash) at the museum:
After a little over an hour, we took a cab back to Parque Prado where a weeklong Semana Criolla was being held. A bit similar to the one we went into in September two years ago in terms of what to expect but this one’s focused on anything about the Uruguayan gauchos, their horseback riding skills, leather items, lifestyle or just plain handicraft. Entrance fees range from UYU 90 to UYU 170 depending on whether you wish to grab a seat while watching a rodeo or just browsing through. I love the part where the rodeo “announcer” sings the blow-by-blow account of the competition while guitar music is being played live. That’s new to me.
Some highlights of the event:
There's a video here and the rest of the pictures here (bellas artes) and here (rodeo) plus a visit to Da Pentella here four days before the Prado trip.
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